Comments on: Unit Owners File Suit Against LEED Gold-Hopeful Riverhouse in Battery Park City

By: Tom Schneider

Tom Schneider — Thu, 05 May 2011 17:23:34 +0000

The “Green” movement is typical of medea darlings and marketers using catch phrases and emotion to motivate the transer of money from one hand to another.
If there was sincere concern over the environment in the construction industry, there would be more than bamboo, garden roofs and local supply being discussed.
LEED design buildings award points for items and processes used based on obvious impacts on carbon footprint and simple to understand concepts, nothing to do with building performance.
There is nothing GREEN about a structure that has to be repaired due to damage and energy loss from air and water intrusion regardless of the materials chosen to build it.
Sustainable buildings are those that last their projected lifespan with minimal maintenence regardless of the materials chosen to build it.
The USGBC and LEEDS buildings are failing to meet expectations because the expectations were never quantified. Very little real life testing done of any sort and none done to measure performance under conditions the structure is likely to experience during it’s lifespan.
Construction materials behave differently under the varying conditions during construction and after. Computer software modeling is typically based on how the materials perform under lab conditions, rarely do we build in lab conditions. Performance standards are typically the lowest common denometer of the manufacturers on the committee that sets them. Almost always, the structure will be exposed to conditions more severe than the standard.
Any wonder that our buildings fail to meet expectations?
What’s irresponsible is that the technology and materials currently exist to meet very high performance standards with no additional cost and LEED etc. have no provision to identify and promote their use.
“Green” should not be the color of your face when you find out your “sustainable” building isn’t.

By: Lawsuits a rising risk for green building projects | Green Building Chronicle

Thu, 10 Mar 2011 15:53:27 +0000

[...] New York City, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tyra Banks and other celebrity homeowners are suing their condo tower builder over claims that their units aren’t as efficient as expected. [...]

By: LEED-Bashing Pile-On Continues On New Fronts | WiredVilla

LEED-Bashing Pile-On Continues On New Fronts | WiredVilla — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 18:53:19 +0000

[...] In New York City, residents of Riverhouse (seen in TreeHugger here) are suing because, according to Stephen Del Percio, “the building’s much-heralded ‘green’ heating system consistently [...]

By: LEED-Bashing Pile-On Continues On New Fronts | WiredVilla

LEED-Bashing Pile-On Continues On New Fronts | WiredVilla — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 18:05:58 +0000

By: LEEDdaily » LEED-Bashing Pile-On Continues On New Fronts

LEEDdaily » LEED-Bashing Pile-On Continues On New Fronts — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 17:56:44 +0000

[...] In New York City, residents of Riverhouse (seen in TreeHugger here) are suing because, according toStephen Del Percio, “the building’s much-heralded ‘green’ heating system consistently fails to [...]

By: Is Canada "Avoiding" Exposure to Green Building Risks? | Green Real Estate Law Journal

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 20:48:54 +0000

[...] the Record appears to be referring to the Gidumal litigation in Battery Park City, as well as some of the insurance claims that were reported back in 2007 by Victor [...]

By: Dust Clearing at Riverhouse as Developer Secures $61M in Additional Financing | Green Real Estate Law Journal

Thu, 17 Jun 2010 21:37:20 +0000

[...] news is also interesting because of the backdrop it provides to the fledgling Gidumal litigation, which we first reported here at GRELJ a couple of weeks [...]

By: Wild Week for Green Real Estate Law Includes Response to USGBC from Northland Pines Appellants | Green Real Estate Law Journal

Wed, 09 Jun 2010 13:09:59 +0000

[...] for the green building legal community; in the past week we’ve witnessed the country’s first reported green condominium litigation and another challenge in federal court to a state-level green building program. Now (over the [...]

By: Stephen Del Percio

Stephen Del Percio — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 19:05:27 +0000

If you missed it over the long weekend, the Wall Street Journal followed up with an article on the lawsuit that includes quotes from both the plaintiffs and the Riverhouse:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703957604575273003196960336.html?mod=WSJ_NY_RealEstate_LEFTTopStories

By: Unit Owners File Suit Against LEED Gold-Hopeful Riverhouse in … | New York County NY Real Estate

Sun, 30 May 2010 03:39:59 +0000

[...] Read the original here: Unit Owners File Suit Against LEED Gold-Hopeful Riverhouse in … [...]

By: Fool’s Gold? Resident Files Suit Against LEED Gold Riverhouse For Not Delivering LEED Gold Goods | greenbuildingsNYC

Thu, 27 May 2010 23:07:50 +0000

[...] several aspects of the design missed LEED Gold standards by 49%. Any of those things would be bad. All of them are alleged in a recent lawsuit filed against Riverhouse’s developers by a tenant. Our own Stephen Del Percio broke this [...]